Day # 30 - And, Scene!

Last day of NaBloPoMo, people! I know I'm not the only one who's relieved. ;) I'm glad I participated in this, because it made me pay more attention to what I put up on the blog in a given month. Plus, there's always a chance I could win one of the fabulous prizes.

However, this experience has taught me that I really do love blogging, but on my own terms. I definitely feel better about blogging when I am free to do it when the mood strikes - and to not do it when the mood ain't there.

Either way, though, thanks to Fussy for inspiring us all to give it the old college try!

Day #29 - Inner Smiles

Here are a few things that made me smile today:

1. Buying fruit at lunch - a lovely Anjou pear & a Gala apple.
2. Helping design the holiday card we send to our tutors. There were definitely giggles & squeals of joy emitting from two twenty-something women when we finished. Of course, we're Christmas-aholics, so this shouldn't be a surprise.
3. Hearing Nick's voice on his cell phone voicemail.
4. Coming home to find the holiday L.L. Bean catalog waiting for me on the hall table.
5. Discovering that I can see the huge Christmas tree on Hometown Green from one of my windows.
6. Finally having an evening to put up my Christmas decorations. See the above photo - even my bathroom gets festive lights!

Day #28 - The End is in Sight!

And thus, I give you . . . a light-up deer in a bathtub!

That's all, folks. :)

Day #27 - Exorcising the Ghost

I need a young priest & an old priest. I have to perform an exorcism & I don't know how. They don't teach that to us Protestants, you know. ;)

This post is going to be difficult to write. It's not that I don't know what to write - it's that I'm afraid of what will come out. In the most basic terms, I need to exorcise the ghost of my ex-boyfriend from my life. Tomorrow is the exact date on which he broke up with me last year. Twelve months later, I feel 99.9% better, but still not completely free.

But how do I do get there, how do I extract the man from my life? I've spent the last year trying to release myself. I erased old emails, deleted old photographs, cut up his love letters & gleefully threw them in the trash. I emailed him a few days before his wedding (he got engaged to his ex-girlfriend five months after we broke up & they got married six weeks ago) and asked him not to contact me ever again.

Yet he's still there. A shadowy ghost - haunting the back of my brain, making me second-guess myself, spurring comparisons to Nick. And I want to be very clear on this - Nick trounces him in every area, every time. In two months, Nick has made me happier than I think AR ever could have made me.

I feel that I need to exorcise AR's ghost to move forward with Nick. It's a tough thing to do, though. AR was the first man I dated for longer than three months, the first man to whom I said "I love you", the first man with whom I discussed marriage, the first man to live with me. How far do I have to go to erase that? Do I have to sell the Christmas & birthday presents his parents gave me? Do I have to give away the slippers his grandmother knitted for me? Do I have to throw away the pencil sketch of one of my favorite scenes that he drew for me?

I wish it was simpler. I wish I had never said those words to him. I wish he had just moved to New York & we had forgotten each other. I wish this post made a little more sense. ;) In the end, he didn't deserve to be with me forever & I'm so thankful that he realized that, even before I did. But how, how, how do I make his ghost go away?

Day #26 - Just 29 Days Until Christmas!

When I was a kid, Halloween was my favorite holiday. I drew untold numbers of little pumpkins & jack-o-lanterns from kindergarten on. There were a number of reasons why Halloween was a shoo-in for my favorite:

1. My birthday was in October (still is, for that matter).
2. You got to dress up (I was a witch for like five straight years).
3. There was candy involved!

However, I always loved the Christmas traditions as well. I loved those nights in December when it got dark early, which meant we could turn on the lights on the tree sooner. I would lie on the floor under the tree in our family room. My mother would be making dinner in the kitchen & the dog would usually be lying next to me. I would stare up at the twinkly lights & familiar ornaments. Even at a young age, I was enthralled.

I believe that Thanksgiving always gets short shrift, so I've avoided getting excited about Christmas until now. But, now, baby - it's on! I've taken my Christmas decorations down from their perch in the closet & tomorrow night will be dedicated to putting them up. I've started eying local Christmas tree places & planning what night I'll pick one up. I've yielded to listening to the local radio station that has played Christmas carols since Halloween. :) Time to be a kid again, everyone!

Day #25 - Other People's Shoes

You know how they say to never judge someone until you've walked a mile in their shoes? Well, today, I have new respect for the single parents of the world. Auntie Stacey was in charge of ferrying a number of small, helpless creatures home to MA today - and boy, there's a lot involved in that! Here's a snapshot of the occupants of the car:

1.) Nickleby the betta fish

2.) Thing 1

3.) Kobe the dog

Plus, let's not forget the various accessories that accompany these critters, like bottles, fishbowls, and leashes. Outside of a 20-minute stop at the Concord, NH rest area for a feeding, things went reasonably well. Auntie Stacey drove slowly & carefully, Thing 1 blew raspberries at the dog (who tried to ignore him), and Nickleby the fish . . . did whatever it is that fish do.
Here's to a successful road trip with a baby, a dog, and a fish! :)

Day #24 - Good Times, Man

High. School. Reunion. Three words that strike fear in the hearts of otherwise sane & self-possessed people. I've got them on the brain today, since tonight is the big night for reunions. Nick will be at his 10th, my sister & bro-in-law will be at her 10th, and I spent this night last year at my 5th.

What is it about these events that make people so crazy? I mean, I completely understand wanting to look good to people you probably disliked 5, 10, or 20 years ago. I'm not being sarcastic, either. You know I went out & bought new high-heeled boots & a new blazer for my reunion. I spent hours in the bathroom perfecting hair, makeup, and jewelry.

However, some of my friends freaked out about the whole thing. That, I don't understand. As long as you're slightly more attractive now than in high school & have a reasonably un-embarassing job, you should be fine! That's my superficial & trite advice, kids. If you have a reunion tonight, get drunk & have a great time. I'm off for my wild night - babysitting my nephew & hanging out with my parents. ;)

Day #23 - Tryptophan Haze

Today was Baby W's first Thanksgiving. He tried a little bit of everything & discovered what he did & did not like. Cranberry sauce was a big hit - turnips were a big bust. Here are the other things W did and did not like:

Like: Blowing raspberries

Like: His puppy Kobe
Another like? Splashing like a mad man in the bathtub.

Dislike: Turkey

Meanwhile, his auntie likes her turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, squash, gravy, and Red Hook Winter Lager! :)

Day #22 - Gearing Up for Turkey Day

Hello, blog buddies. T-minus 22 hours until the feast! I got out of work at 3 pm today, which was awesome. :) Still, it's a busy day. I'm sneaking this post in between packing for NH & coffee with my friend E. (from this wedding and this bridesmaid faux pas). Then, it's dinner with the best friend who is home from law school in NYC, sleeping at Nick's, and an early morning trip to my parents' in NH. Whew!

I will post again tomorrow night after stuffing my face with turkey, but I just wanted to put up this picture of the wild turkey that used to wander around near my office. I also wanted to wish you & yours a very happy Thanksgiving! Here's hoping being home with our crazy families will give us all lots to post about. ;)

Day #21 - Beauty When You Least Expect It

The scene - my office. The time - 5:05 pm (almost quitting time). I'm sitting at my desk, bored & listless. I get up to wander around a bit, and whoa! I'm hit with a beautiful sunset above the trees near my office. I snapped a photo on my phone for you all to enjoy. :)

Day #20 - Travels Around the Blogosphere

Evening, kiddos. Hope you all had a nice Monday. Woo - but it was cold outside, huh? Guess we're in for it now.

Sometimes, in my journey around the blogosphere, I find blogs that I like. Sometimes, I find blogs that I like-like. You know, the way you liked the boy in your algebra class in 7th grade. Little flutters in your stomach when he walked into class, sneaky side glances during the boring drone of a + b = c, always wanting to find out more about him. You know.

Here are two blogs with which I've recently fallen into Like. They're written by two funny, interesting women across the pond - one in Edinburgh and one in London. I enjoy their writing & I enjoy the connection to these great cities. Check them out & let me know what you think!

Oh, and if you want to browse blogs & find some new reads, you can always check out the NaBloPoMo randomizer.

Day #19 - "Those Crabs are Huge!"

Don't worry, no one here has an STD. ;) Just raging hangovers & blurry memories of giant crabs in a tank in a Chinatown restaurant. I went out drinking with Nick & his buddies last night. I should have posted, like these ladies, to nail down the elusive drunk post. However, the beer, liquor & bad Chinese food made me forget. Here's a recap of last night's highlights (or low-lights, I suppose).

• Went through two cases of Heineken & watched a bit of Blue Velvet. That is one messed up movie, kids.
• Hit the Beer Garden in Southie & had a relationship conversation ("we should be smart & take this slowly") with the boyfriend in between beers & shots of Jager.
• Moved to Murphy's Law & played a rousing game of "whack your friend's beer bottle with your own & make it foam up." I lost, miserably. Our table ended up covered in beer. We used copies of the Improper Bostonian to soak it up.
• Nick's bright idea when we walked out of Murphy's Law? Chinatown! Where we ate really bad food, got freaked out by above-mentioned giant crabs, and decided to head home when his friends headed for the strip club. Good idea, Nick. ;)

On the way home, we stopped by Murphy's Law again to pick up my vest. I had forgotten it there & not even noticed until we left the Chinese place. For some reason, there was a line to get in, so Nick had to persuade the bouncer (and the people in line) to let him in to get the vest. I don't think they really believed him until I came over & stood next to the door, shivering intentionally & hugging the take-out bag of Chinese food.

It was a crazy night, kids. ;)

Day #18 - Are you Ready for Some Football?

(Football photo courtesy of Southwestern Oklahoma State University)

Hey kids. Do you know what today is? Apparently, it's a big time football day! Don't worry if you didn't know that, though. Until recently, I didn't know, either.

Turns out there are two "The Games" today: Harvard/Yale and Ohio State/Michigan. I don't know how one could determine which was more important. Perhaps connection to the college in question? I mean, I've always been peripherally aware of the Harvard/Yale game. I grew in a suburb of Boston, after all. Around here, Harvard is practically banal.

However, I was not aware of the Ohio State/Michigan rivalry until I started dating Nick. Nick, by the way, is a huge football fan. If the man is at home on a Saturday around 10:00 am and doesn't turn on College Gameday, I get concerned.

It's a good thing I was raised in a household where it was ok to be a massive sports fan. And went to college with a bunch of boys who were big video game players. All of these experiences have honed my skills, actually. I know that you don't talk too much during football/baseball/basketball games, whether real or on the video game screen. I know that any expectation of a normal, back-and-forth conversation is unreasonable when a big game is on. And I know the big one - DO NOT WALK IN FRONT OF THE TV. If you must cross in front of the TV screen, you must either jump or wait for a judicious moment to run.

All of this makes it sound like Nick is a bad, football-crazed boyfriend. Please don't think that. Remember last weekend, when he took me for a walk on the beach while football was being played? Remember our first date, when he decided to forgo a whole day's worth of football to spend time with me?

Besides, my father took my mother home early on their first date so he could catch the Red Sox game (the VCR hadn't been invented yet), so I don't freak out about this stuff as much as some girly-girls might. Plus, it's a nice change from the artsy-fartsy ex who just looked uncomfortable if there were professional sports on the TV.

Now, I'm off to shower & shop for my mother's birthday gifts. After that, it's out to South Boston to meet Nick & his friends. They're at the BC/Maryland game now, then we're meeting up to watch the Ohio State/Michigan game. Because I studied abroad with two boys from Ohio, I think I have to say it - Go Buckeyes!

Day #17 - Home on a Friday Night

Lame! I know. Well, the boyfriend is at a work party tonight & I haven't any plans. The single girl in me revolts, wonders why I need a boyfriend to make plans. I went out for many years without one!

To my credit, though, it's not for lack of desire. If my best friend didn't live in NYC, if my other best friend didn't spend her weekends exclusively with her boyfriend, I'd be better off. I certainly tried tonight. I emailed most of my friends in Boston to see what they were doing. I got one offer, for a party in Brookline. I thought about it, but once I got home from work, the allure of my fleece pajamas & my laptop won out.

A part of me is a little sad to not see Nick tonight, since it's been exactly two months since our first date. However, I marked off every month's anniversary with the ex & he broke up with me just three days before our 6-month anniversary. So maybe it's best to only make note of the big ones! ;)

Incidentally, if Nick & I stay together that long, our 6-month anniversary will be on St. Patty's Day! As Erin points out, not a bad day to celebrate.

(Update: He called around 10:30 just to say hi. That made me smile.)

Day #16 - Dipping Into the Pre-planned Posts

OK, I'm not out of material, but my friend L. is coming over tonight & I just want to write a quick post. Hence, the one joke that I have ever successfully memorized. This joke goes over well in the states, but it kills in Scotland. ;)

A man walks into a bar carrying an octopus. He sets the octopus on the bar and announces, "This here is my musical octopus. I will bet any man in this bar that my octopus can play any instrument you put in front of him. You get three chances." All of the bar patrons, drunk & skeptical, are eager to take the bet. After the bartender takes everyone's money, they rummage around & dig up a trumpet.

The octopus ponders the trumpet for a minute, then picks it up & plays a song that Louis Armstrong would have killed to have been able to play.

"OK, fine", the patrons mumble. They dig up a guitar & place it on the bar. The octopus ponders it for a minute, then picks it up & wails out a riff that makes Jimi Hendrix roll over in his grave.

"Uh-oh, we need something good," the bar patrons say. They dig around in the back & someone manages to produce a set of bagpipes. They place it on the bar & the octopus looks at it. He looks, and looks, and looks. Finally, he turns to his owner and shrugs.

After paying out hundreds of dollars to the bar patrons, the guy picks up the octopus & walks out to the street. He says to the octopus, "Why couldn't you play those bagpipes?" The octopus says*, "I was supposed to play it? Shit, if I could have got its pajamas off, I would have fucked it!"

Bud-duh-bump-ching! I'll be here all week, folks. Try the veal.

*Yeah, it's a talking octopus, too.

Day #15 - Hump Day

OK, so I gots nothing. I've been roaming around the blogosphere, checking out my regular reads & a few new ones from NaBloPoMo. However, I don't have much to write about myself. So here are a few random thoughts:

1. I emailed the professors I met with on Monday to thank them for meeting with me. The graduate director wrote back maybe three minutes later to say, "We look forward to reading your application.' Woot!
2. My sister has been more bored than usual at work & finally decided to quit lurking. She's commented on two whole posts! Welcome to the blogosphere, big sis. :)
3. When I spoke to my mum last night on the phone, she held the phone up to my nephew & made me talk. I could hear my family laughing in the background. Apparently, Thing 1 was so excited to hear his auntie's voice coming out of the phone that he was wiggling, smiling, and trying to kiss the phone. :)
4. I like that new Dockers commercial - with the "Go, boy, go" song in the background.
5. I've been enjoying NaBloPoMo so far, but I am kind of glad it's halfway over. I like posting during the week & normally post every weekday. However, I've had to hit the pause button on some weekend fun in order to post and I resent that a little bit.
6. I. Am. So. Excited. For. Christmas!!! I know it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but we're getting there. Yay for white lights & Christmas cartoons & snowy nights & candlelit church services. :) Oh, and hot cocoa. Of course.
   

Day #14 - Menstrual Madness

(Illustration by Luis S. Parejo)

Pssst . . . Yeah, you over there, reading my blog. I think my period is making me crazy. Shhh , keep it down - it might hear you! ;)

Seriously, though, I hate the beginning of my period. Cramps that could fell a Clydesdale & emotional mood swings of tsunami proportions. For example - remember my boyfriend? That lovely man who (thus far) has been nothing but sweet to me? Well, tonight, I called him on the way home from tutoring. When he hadn't called back a mere 20 minutes later, I was concocting all kinds of disaster scenarios involving other girlfriends & berating myself for getting so attached so quickly.

Yeah, nuts. That's not even the worst part. When Nick left my apartment this morning, he dropped the cap to his cologne outside on the walkway. Being a good girlfriend, I picked it up for him & dumped it into my cup holder to give back tomorrow. However, the thing is heavily impregnated with cologne & has literally been making me woozy. As I drove along with the window cracked & a burgeoning headache, my sick twisted menstrual mind was like, "If I can't stand his scent, how can I be with him? It's clearly not meant to be. What was I thinking?!?"

Yeah. Certifiable. Someone help me please. ;)

Day # 13 - Rainy Vacation Day

Man, vacation days just aren't what they used to be. ;) Sleeping late, lounging around in pajamas, having a long lunch - none of these things factored into my day off today. Instead, I got up at 7:15 am, renewed my car registration ($127), had my car inspected ($51 and a future appt. to fix my reverse lights), and headed out in the rain for the 90 minute drive to State U. for a meeting with the graduate director of the history department.

The good news is - the meeting went really well! The department doesn't formally interview master's candidates, but I thought it would help my application to get some face-time with the history faculty. I met with the graduate director for a bit and we talked about how my research interests might gel with the interests of the faculty.

She then brought me down the hall to speak with an assistant professor of Canadian & environmental history. We had a good chat about the various fields of history in which we're mutually interested and possible topics for theses. I came away feeling like the guy would be willing to be my advisor, so I think it went well!

I then wandered around State U's campus (still in the rain), checking things out & looking for the library. I found it and it was beautiful. Sigh, I love the architecture of university libraries (except for Edinburgh University - I was always amazed that such a historic & lovely city could produce such an ugly concrete box of a university library).

All in all, I think the day went pretty well, despite the rain & the 140-something miles I drove in it. Now, I'm signing off to enjoy spicy orange chicken, beef & broccoli, and pork fried rice with the boyfriend. :) Have a nice night, kiddos!

Day #12 - Weekend in Review

So the weekend started off well with dinner out in the North End. On Saturday, we got up around 10, made coffee, and finished off the pastries from Friday night. After a few hours of watching college football, Nick tore himself away to take me for a walk down to the beach. The weather was absolutely beautiful. The picture below is of me on the beach, with my feet in the water, on November 11th!
In the evening, we headed up to Newton to see BC beat Duke at Alumni Stadium. Nick & his friends have season tickets, but it was my first BC game. Since my grandfather went to BC back in the 1940's, I actually have a legitimate link to the college, too. :)
Two of my good college friends, Tim & John, were in town, so we headed to Tim's girlfriend's place after the game. We drank there for thirty minutes or so, then headed over to Shenanigans. As you can see below, the evening quickly degenerated after the Irish car bombs. ;)

Day #11 - An Evening in the North End

Well, the evening didn't go exactly as planned, but it was lovely anyway. We had 8:00 pm reservations at Dolce Vita, but when we walked in at five minutes of, we were shooed out the door by the owner, along with many other reservation holders. Apparently, the restaurant was full to capacity & our reservations didn't mean squat.

A little nonplussed, we wandered further down the street & stopped at Tresca. Their dining room was full (guess we should have known better than to try to eat in the North End on a beautiful November night!), but they had a high top table available in the window near the bar. We snagged it & settled in, with a great view of the street traffic.

We started with a bottle of the 2004 Fattoria le Sorgenti Chianti dei Colli Fiorentini. After enjoying three different kinds of bread with olive oil, we ordered. I chose the eight ounce grilled Black Angus tenderloin with whipped potatoes and asparagus. Nick selected the roasted rack of lamb with pecorino dumpling, bean sprouts, and carrots. They were both absolutely lovely.

After the meal, we wandered down the street to Modern Pastry Shop. The line for pastries was long, but not out the door like Mike's down the street. When we got to the head of the line, we picked out an eclair, a chocolate-coated cannoli, and a peach mousse treat. We were too full to eat them last night, but they made a great breakfast this morning! :)

Day # 10 - Veteran's Day

In honor of Veteran's Day, I wanted to talk about my grandfather. My grampa was a tank commander in the U.S. Army's 752 Tank Battalion. He served in Italy from 1944-46. I try to make an effort every Veteran's Day to thank him for his service to our country during that time.

In my mind, WWII was the last time that we, as Americans, were confident in and clear about our military mission. Our soldiers knew they were fighting to keep those who couldn't fight for themselves, like Baby W (above), safe from fascism.

I'll see my grampa on Sunday, at which time I'll give him a big hug and thank him for giving almost everything for this country. In the meantime, thank you, Grampa!

Day #9 - Feelin' Fine

OK, I gots two things to talk about tonight & they both start with "D". Numero uno - I should have posted this sooner, but hooray for the Democrats!!! I've been waiting a long time for this moment & I know I'm not the only one. So thank you, America, for seeing through the current administration's smoke screen & voting for people who have a different vision of our country - one in which we all still have our civil rights.

Numero dos - The division in which I work met a certain goal for the month of October. Big deal, right? Well, when you get a $100 bonus because of it, it's a great deal! Because I'm a great girlfriend, I'm using the money to take Nick out to dinner in the North End tomorrow night. We have reservations at Dolce Vita & I have a great black dress that is dying for a night out. ;) I'll give you a restaurant review & night recap on Saturday!

Day #8 - Starting 'Em Young

Tonight, I went to the New England Auto Show with Nick & my family. Most of us have been going for years, but it was Nick & Thing 1's first trip. The show is a great opportunity to check out cars that I will never be able to afford. ;)

Thing 1 absolutely loved it, too. This is a picture of him & my brother-in-law sitting in a Ford Focus. He also tried out the Pontiac Solstice with his grammy & the Chevy HHR with his auntie. The child loves shifting! He's not even 9 months old yet & he was sitting on my mum's lap, making the shift knob move back & forth and giggling like crazy. It was great.

That's all I've got for tonight. Have a lovely evening, kids!

Day # 7 - Lucky Sevens

Tonight was kind of a neat little road trip for me. I continued to tutor students nights & weekends after I took the full-time job at my company, so I'm easily accessible to the people who put students & tutors together. Therefore, I am often convinced to take students in hard-to-reach towns. Obviously, I can't tell you where I went tonight, but it was ninety minutes from my office & sixty minutes home. So I left the office at 5:30 & didn't arrive home until 9:30 - all for just ninety minutes of tutoring.

However, the student lived in a lovely little country town & it felt like a mini road trip. On the drive out there, I passed the barn where I used to ride & the restaurant where my family used to have dinner on our annual fall foliage trips. Of course, I also passed through the little town where the ex & I shopped for antiques after an apple-picking trip last fall. Yuck. The man grew up in middle-of-nowhere New York . . . how is it possible that middle-of-nowhere MA can remind me of him?

Despite the ex flashback, it was an enjoyable trip. On the way home, I stopped for a coffee & a glazed donut, then chatted with the new (& much improved) boyfriend for awhile. Not a bad evening!

Day #6 - Yummy Food & Old Friends

Tonight, I had dinner with two of my oldest friends, girls I've known since I was 4 or 5 years old. I'd seen Christie in September (she set Nick & I up!), but hadn't seen Tracey in a good 8-10 years. It was wonderful to enjoy a 2-hour dinner with them, eating good food & doing a lot of catching up. That's really all I have for tonight - just a bit of appreciation for staying in touch with old friends & being able to see how they've grown & changed & bettered over the years. :) Thanks for a lovely evening, girls!

Day #5 - Other Random Weekend Things

Whoa - extreme close up. :) This was me yesterday afternoon, wrapped up in Nick's huge puffer vest, trying desperately (& without success) to warm up after our jaunt to Castle Island.

We had a busy day yesterday, which started with a trip to Wal-Mart. Now, I'm not a very big Wal-Mart fan, but I bought my tires from them last year & since one of said tires went flat last Saturday, I needed them to make good on their road hazard warranty for me. Unfortunately, the only Wal-Mart store in Massachusetts with a Tire & Lube Express is 45 minutes away! However, it was a productive trip. Nick stocked up on groceries (their prices are really good) & I picked up some goodies of my own.

Like this - my new flash drive! This one comes with three skins - one clear, one pink, and one blue - and 256 MB of storage space. I paid $18 for it, which is a little less than the average price.

This is where I cut my hand, trying to get the stupid plastic packaging open.

This is the green & white striped rugby shirt I got for Baby W. Price? $3.00. Size? 24 months, even though the child is not even 9 months old yet. Seriously? My nephew is going to be a linebacker!

After a lovely morning in South Boston - two cups of coffee, homemade kielbasa, egg & cheese breakfast sandwiches, and lounging in my PJ's - I'm home for a few hours. I have a student from 5-6:30, then Nick is coming over to watch the Pats game. Enjoy your Sunday afternoons everyone!

Day #4 - Castle Island

Along with Jenny & Sarah, I'm a little weirded out by the Saturday blogging. ;) However, today is a good day to start, since Nick & I walked out to Castle Island this afternoon. It was a chilly, but lovely fall day - a great time to walk around & take some photos.

Gate to the South Boston Yacht Club

View of the financial district from the bridge to Castle Island

The Prudential through the trees

The MBTA Commuter Boat & the Donald McKay monument (dedicated to the builder of the clipper ships Flying Cloud & Sovereign of the Seas)

Only in South Boston, right? ;)

Check out the rest of the pictures here.

Day #3 - Friday Night in Southie

Spent tonight with the boyfriend and his friends in South Boston. It was nice to just drink beers, hang out, and de-stress from the work week. We got pizza and watched a little bit of Outside Providence, which is a pretty funny little movie. I was thinking tonight that I'm continuing to fall in love with South Boston. I just love that rough streets like the one above (courtesy of South Street Gallery) exist so close to the ocean. I miss the ocean, so I've made Nick promise to take me to the beach tomorrow. We spent the tail end of our second date on L St. beach and I'll always remember that night as one of our first great kisses. :)

(P.S. I promised myself I would write a drunk post at some point during NaBloPoMo and this one is almost that. I'm a few beers in, so it's a little more goofy than I had intended.)

Day #2 - We Must All Be Nuts

As I cryptically mentioned at the end of yesterday's post, I'm participating in NaBloPoMo, National Blog Posting Month. It's a great idea that Fussy had, modeled on National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). I'm a little apprehensive about the challenge of posting every single day, but I think it's a great idea.

It's particularly timely for me, because I haven't spent too much time & attention on the blog as of late. It's mostly because of the new beau. Don't take that the wrong way - I'm delirious with the new-boyfriend butterflies & happily settling into my relationship with this man. He's really something special. :)

But, the nature of a new relationship does not allow for much alone time. Having been single for 99% of my life, that takes a little adjustment. I haven't really sat down & composed a thoughtful post for a few weeks. Hopefully, NaBloPoMo will force me to do just that. Fingers crossed, everyone!

Baby's First Halloween

So, Thing 1 had his first Halloween - and he was a cow. :) I don't think he had any idea what was going on, but he was still cuter than cute. Nick & I went over my sister's house to hand out candy with my parents, sister & bro-in-law.

Come on, that is adorable!

This was him showing Auntie Stacey how he can crawl (a.k.a. roll around on the carpet).

Rolling out of the frame.

It's a pity his eyelashes are so short & insignificant!

Check out the rest of the pictures here.

(Oh, and P.S. I am rocking out to NaBloPoMo this month and this was post #1, biznitches!)